


We were just kids...

by defenestrationANDcoffee



Series: The Klaus Chronicles [1]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Character Death, Childhood Trauma, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Implied/Referenced Drug Use
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:07:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25160605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/defenestrationANDcoffee/pseuds/defenestrationANDcoffee
Summary: Klaus Hargreeves had never asked to be special. None of them had. But here they were.Umbrella Academy TV show fic (: Part 1 of a series (will continue to be released so watch out for it!), this part will focus on childhood Umbrella kids. In depth into (mainly) Klaus' life, but deepening the character connections within the Hargreeves family. Will be differing POV focussed on throughout, let me know what you think in the comments! I know it's taken forever for me to get started but i'm motivated because of season 2!Contains drug use.
Relationships: Ben Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Klaus Hargreeves & Everyone, Number Five | The Boy & Diego Hargreeves, Number Five | The Boy & Vanya Hargreeves
Series: The Klaus Chronicles [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1822699
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11





	We were just kids...

Hearing the floorboard outside his door squeak, Klaus, in a mix of panic and elation, jammed his eyes shut, the covers to his bed pulled up to his chin. He could hear the slow mechanical  _ click - click - click _ of the hands on his watch ticking by. The door creaked and from behind his eyelids Klaus saw a slice of light fall across his face… But it wasn’t the warm glow of the hall, it was beam-like, and excitement engulfed him as someone hissed-

“Klaus!”

The familiarity of Ben’s voice was so comforting Klaus would have sung a reply, but the late hour of 11:42 silenced him. Throwing back his blankets to reveal a totally dressed, sock-clad yet shoeless body, Klaus stretched comically, feigning the biggest yawn he could muster. 

“ _ Yaaaaaaaawn.  _ Oh, would you look at the time! It looks like Number 6 is breaking Reggie’s rule seven-hundred-and-forty-eight  _ again _ -” 

“Come _ on _ , Klaus, we don’t have time for this!” Ben whispered, the beam of his flashlight falling to the feet of the bed. He rolled his eyes, groaning. “You don’t even have shoes on-”

“All in good time, brother-o’-mine,” Klaus replied, slipping on trainers and deftly tying the right shoe up. Standing, he cantered towards the door, Ben glancing left and right out the door before leading him down the hall. 

“You missed one.” Ben pointed out, gesturing down at his left shoes untied laces, but Klaus shook his head, winking. Frowning, Ben snapped off his torch. 

“If this is one of your stunts-”

“Benny-boy, when will you understand that not everything I do is for attention?” They turned from the hall and began descending the grand staircase leading towards the front door. 

“Klaus, yesterday you showed up to breakfast in only your-”

But before Ben could finish, a small scuffle at the foot of the stairs silenced them both. 

“Five! Don’t-” 

“Shut  _ UP _ Luther!” A small  _ zap!- _ like pop echoed through the entrance hall and Klaus jumped the last two stairs, joining the small congregation with Ben at his side. Even through the darkness, Luther’s frown was obvious. 

“Ugh! He’s gone! Does he  _ ever _ listen?” 

“Maybe he thinks that good old Number One was being unfair,” Diego challenged, seemingly baiting Luther to an argument, but Klaus didn’t give him the chance- 

“What is up, my fellow-” 

“Shut it!” Allison looked mutinous, looking from Klaus to Diego to Luther, arms crossed. 

“Why aren’t we leaving?” Ben whispered.

“Five thought it best that we bring everyone,” Allison said, still glaring slightly at Luther. 

“ _ Everyone _ , everyone?” Klaus raised his eyebrows and Allison nodded. He shrugged,  _ what did that matter?  _ he thought. “Well, that’s simply fine, no harm done. In fact, if Vanya has some extra cash she  _ may _ be able to lend me a few-”

“Nobody’s paying for you today, Klaus.” The authority in Luther’s voice had returned, the grumbling tone now absent. Despite this, his frustration at the plan going awry was still crystal clear. 

...

There had never been a quiet getaway from the Umbrella Academy. Each time the inaugural class had attempted an evening outing, something (or more likely, someone) had been majorly out of order. First attempt was late 1999, the then-10-year-olds had all exited their rooms simultaneously and, upon making such a squeaky ruckus on the wooden landing, had been found by Reginald almost immediately; received a harsh reprimand, sent back to their rooms and denied fun activities for the next 5 weeks. 

Attempt two also had a similar fate befall it. Making it as far as the Entrance Hall, everything had seemed to be in order before Vanya tripped, hitting one of the ornate wooden columns and sending a priceless porcelain vase to the floor. Absolutely terrified and sprinting to alternative stairways, the rest of the children had reached their beds before Pogo had found Vanya beside the shattered remains, who cleverly disguised her accident as an attempted trip to get a glass of water. Still, nobody made an effort to invite her to any midnight outings after that. 

The third attempt had been an unmitigated success. Having decided upon a pairing system, the sound of six children on the floorboards was no longer an issue: Luther would wake Allison and they would make their way to the Hall first. Diego and Five would follow (Five jumping to Diego’s room certainly assisted the procedure), and approximately two minutes after that Ben would get Klaus, all of them meeting beneath the chandelier at 11:45pm. Apart from the surprisingly loud escape out the front door, their mission (at least, attempt number three), succeeded.  _ Whoop _ !-ing their way to Griddy’s, the sextet happily settled on the bright saffron stools and ordered as many doughnuts as their combined $18.82 could buy (surprisingly quite a lot, mainly due to Griddy’s 12 for $6 deal). 

The only hint at their activities has been the inability for anyone to stomach breakfast the following morning. 

Since then, attempts 4-6 had hiccups but were altogether uneventful. Realising the front doors’ nearing ability to wake Pogo, the Academy adapted by using the newspaper-plastered back entrance, climbing their way up to the street. Additionally, the nights Reginald plastered neural monitors to their heads were a no-go, peeling it off led to immediate alert and capture. They also had to be sure it was their pair coming for them and not Reginald, the branded ‘ _ Klaus Incident’ _ (though there were so many, it was never really clear which one anyone was referring to) occurred when Klaus, expecting Ben, lay fully dressed in his bed and stood up when the door opened, only to be greeted with Reggie and his brain monitor. The others never learned the precise nature of Klaus’ punishment, he certainly never told them, but he and Mr Hargreeves left the house on multiple occasions only for Klaus to return shaking and tear-stained. Luther had said not to worry, whatever Dad was doing was justified, Klaus’s power needed more training anyway. 

Therefore, setting out on attempt 7 was child’s play: until Five changed the plan.

...

“I know, he’s just thinking of her,” Luther whined, “But remember last time we brought her, you could hear that vase shattering from the moon!” 

“Exaggeration,” Ben piped up, and Luther shot him a dirty look.

“If she screws this up-”

“She won’t, Luther.” Allison’s arms were still tightly crossed. “You’re just paranoid. I can rumour it if it goes sideways.” 

Luther’s expression seemed to soften a bit as two figures turned the corner and began descending the stairs: Five leading a pyjama wearing Vanya. 

“At last,” Klaus groaned, putting a hand on his stomach. “I could just about eat a horse, don’t you say guys?” 

“Ha ha,” Five mocked. “I apologise for being the only one with a conscience,”

“Apology accepted,” Luther shot back, Diego snorting with laughter at his indiscretion. 

“Come on guys.” Ben rolled his eyes at them all but guiltily avoided Vanya’s. 

“Fine,” Luther said. “Follow me.” 

**…**

“Heyyyy, Vanya,” Klaus held back from the group, falling in step with Seven as they made their way along the cracked sidewalks. “Any chance you got a penny or two? I  _ completely _ forgot and left my fanny pack at home, you know me… off with the pixies half the time!” He waved his hands around comically, before intertwining his fingers eagerly. 

Vanya’s anxious appearance cracked a small smile, the excitement in her eyes the previously only visible emotion. “No Klaus, I don’t,” she said, eyeing him in a sceptical but still loving manner.

“Oh, that’s too bad,” Klaus sighed. 

“And even if I did…” she shook her head slyly. “Five already told me that you would try and ask for mine. So no.” 

“That bleeding little toerag!” Klaus exclaimed, craning his neck to try and find Five in the mass of siblings in front of him. Vanya laughed, then quietened. Klaus kicked a rock on the ground. 

“Klaus-” Vaya started, and Klaus knew what was coming just from the tone of her voice. “I… I think I know why you’re always out of money.” Klaus kicked another rock, sending it skidding into an alleyway, one of the many dark passageways that lined the brightly lit streets of the city. “If... I’m right, I want to help. I know that none of us… know what it’s like but... there’s no point taking the stuff that you are-”

“Come on, Vanya, you really think I’d go and do something like that?” Trying to keep his voice steady, Klaus raised his head and looked at his sister and noticed her eyes were wide, concerned. He quickly turned his gaze back towards the rest of his siblings. “I have money, see!” Pulling a sock that jangled slightly from his pocket, he shrugged. “I was kidding, c’mon- lighten up a bit!” He grabbed her shoulders, shaking her slightly and she smiled, concern ebbing slightly. Before the conversation could continue, they turned the corner and were met with the fluorescent glow of the only establishment on the block: Griddy’s Doughnuts. Klaus cheered, throwing both hands into the air. Feigning prosperous tears, he yelled, as if rehearsed: 

“Behold! The sanctuary above all sanctuaries! The 24-hour palace that we seek!” 

Rolling their eyes, the siblings continued forwards, but Klaus, properly devoted to the dramatic arts, sank to his knees. “We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time!” 

“Poetic,” Ben cawed. 

“Hurry up!” Diego held open the door as Klaus hurried to enter, bowing low in front of Diego. “For Pete’s sake-” Diego groaned, grabbing a blunt knife from his pocket. 

“I’m going, man, I’m in,” Klaus replied defensively, but the cocky smile was still written across his face. “Ok, all you theatre snubs! What’re we getting tonight?” 

**...**

“Why’d you keep doing that?” 

“What?” 

They were each 8 doughnuts in and (as usual) the ecstasy of the arrival was wearing thin, instead being slowly replaced by a rapidly accelerating sugar high. Luther, Allison and Five were arguing over the best flavour, Ben was patting Vanya’s back as she hunched over, full to the brim while Klaus lay sprawled, arms extended, across the counter. His answer to Diego’s question had obviously been unsatisfactory: Number Two narrowed his eyes at him. 

“Checking your watch.”

“Hm?”

“Don’t play dumb.” Diego shifted in his seat. “You’ve been checking it for the last half-hour,”

“Have not,” Klaus exclaimed. 

“Have too,” Diego retorted, but his heart wasn’t in it, there was almost a receding quality to his reply. It gave Klaus an uneasy feeling: Diego and him could banter for hours, what was the matter with him? 

“Lemme just go puke up the last four doughnuts I ate,” Klaus exclaimed, slipping off the counter, almost tripping over his unlaced shoe, and traipsing over to the bathrooms. The door swung shut behind him and the tunes from the jukebox were gone, the vivid walls reflecting a vomit-inducing hue of pale yellow back at him.  _ Yuck _ , he thought. What was wrong with everyone tonight? First Vanya, now Diego, both off their game and asking weird questions. Maybe he just wanted to know the time! But even Klaus couldn’t pretend his reason for checking his watch so much was entirely innocent. He reached the sink closest to the first cubicle, his hands on the taps, ready to turn them...And suddenly it hit him in the chest like being injected with ice: a coldness spread through him in an instant, right to his fingertips. Catching his reflection in the bathroom mirror, Klaus saw how fast he paled, fear fusing into every atom of his being. 

“ _ No! _ ” 

The small whisper escaped his mouth before he could stop it, his breathing sped up like he had just run 100 miles. Reaching out and gripping the sink, his knuckles blanched at the force of his hold.  _ Breath, Klaus. Breath! _ It wasn’t working, he could hear them - they were coming for him! He jammed shut his eyes. “ _ No, no, no, no, no, no, no!”  _

The small sounds were not enough to conjure anybody to find him, quivering in the bathroom. His eyes flickered open - for just a fraction of a second - and in the mirror he saw it standing behind him, a ghost so horrible he almost did puke up the last four doughnuts he’d had. It was a man- his head was split in two, but not cleanly, instead the axe (or whatever weapon that could make such an injury) had only gone halfway in, the divide reaching the top of the dead man’s lips… lips that were forming words. Brain matter was protruding from the cavernous crack in his head, and Klaus couldn’t scream, he couldn’t say anything, but the man was speaking, spitting blood and brain matter -

“H-help, help m-me!” he spat at Klaus, raising a hand as Klaus fell to the ground, screaming (or trying to, he couldn’t tell which) while he hid under the sink, back against the tiled wall. The dead man reached down, and Klaus felt the fear in his chest rise- 

“Klaus!”

The heavenly sound of the jukebox returned as the door swung open, Diego rushing in. The ghost was gone, Klaus was frozen, petrified as he gulped air as if he’d been drowning. Diego lifted him to his feet, worry etched into his expression. 

“What did you see?” 

Klaus closed his eyes, preventing tears from escaping, his throat closing up. Shaking his head, he willed Diego to let go of him but not to leave, but his brothers’ grip stayed tight. 

“Klaus?”

A deep breath. He rubbed his eyes deeply, opening them to the ugly yellow walls. 

“Yeah,” he breathed.

“Talk to me. What happened,”

“Nothing. M’fine,” Klaus mumbled, moving to turn on the taps. 

“Klaus,” Diego insisted. “You’re not. Talk. You can’t go through this alone-”

“ _ You can’t see them! _ ” Klaus hissed. He didn’t mean to snap so suddenly - he didn’t want to - but it was like a fuse. He was sick of people telling him he wasn’t alone, that’s all he ever was. “Nobody but me can see them! I  _ am _ alone,  _ Two _ .” It stung, Klaus could tell. He and Diego never called each other by their numbers; not unless they were intent on hurting the other. Its effect was obvious: Diego’s expression hardened, he let go of Klaus.

“I’m just trying to help,” he said. 

“No need,” Klaus said coldly, turning on the taps and splashing water on his face. As he dried his hands, his eyes reflexively found his watch. Pretending to wipe his hands, he willed Diego not to notice, but his brother was too astute for him. 

“You gonna tell me why you’re doing that?”

“No,”

“Why not?”

“Why don’t you go and ask Mommy about it?” the words slipped from Klaus’ mouth before he could stop them. His anger had already been bubbling under the surface, he couldn’t stop it now. Diego’s reaction was immediate. 

“What did you s-say?” he thundered, moving too quick to process, but Klaus could now see the silver glint of a knife between his fingers. Diego had always been closest with Mom, his bond with her was unmatchable, everybody knew it. It was partly his stutter, the bond they shared in overcoming it, but his want to compete with Luther - to be better than Number One - went against his connection with Grace. He tried to be tough, and if there was any insinuation that would hurt the competitive, assertive Diego, it would be that he was a Mommy’s boy. The door swung open and a sudden scream ‘ _ Diego no! _ ’, and suddenly Klaus’s sleeve was pinned against the wooden wall of the cubicle, a silver knife piercing the fabric of his shirt to the wall. 

Vanya stood, hand over her mouth, in the doorway staring at the scene; Klaus’s shock and Diego’s anger seemed to pervade the air, emulating from the explosion of emotions. There was a scurrying of feet, and the remaining siblings' faces filled the doorway. 

“Alright, everybody calm down,” Luther commanded. 

“I do not,” Diego said, his voice unnaturally steady, “Need you to tell me what to do.” In a step he covered the distance between him and Klaus, pulling the knife from the wall and returning it to his pocket. Klaus blinked, shock still rippling through him, as Diego turned away and pushed past his siblings, out the door. 

“I think we should go home,” Allison suggested, warily looking from Klaus to the others.

“Yeah, lets.” Luther ushered everyone out of the bathroom, shaking his head at Klaus. _ Why me? _ Klaus thought,  _ why is it always me? _ He yelled after Luther: 

“It wasn’t my fault-” 

“Sure,” Luther muttered, following Allison as the door swung back on the yellow-tinged room. Klaus’ eyes slid to his watch; 12:30am exactly.  _ Perfect _ . Vanya and Ben continued to look uneasily at him. 

“What?” He mocked their concerned expressions. “I assume you, too, can only see me as guilty?” 

… 

_ Trenery and Case _ . Klaus mouthed the words voicelessly,  _ the corner of Trenery and Case _ , his eyes scanning all the street signs that he could see _.  _ He should have paid more attention on his way to Griddy’s, so he wouldn’t be taking his chances now- 

_ There!  _

Segmented by a street sign, he spotted a small alleyway coming off the brightly lit street, 20 paces ahead, on his right. The signposted lettering for Trenery Street indicated it was the road he was travelling down, and Case Way was the alley careening off it. He relaxed, he’d found it, but a new burst of adrenaline coursed through him…  _ now he had to get away with it _ . 

10 paces. Klaus slowed slightly, pulling away from the group. All he had to do was pause, unnoticed, but Ben was too close to him ( _ goddamn brotherly bond! _ ) - he would definitely call attention to Klaus’ plan.  _ That’s ok _ , he thought,  _ You planned for this _ . 

5 paces. Slowing more, Klaus pulled up to the alley, made a grand gesture of looking down and opened his mouth.

“Ah guys, my shoelace!” he groaned loudly, gesturing down to his untied left shoe.

“We don’t need any more holdups, Four,” Luther’s frustrated voice rang out. Even Diego shot a glare in Klaus’ direction which Klaus felt in his soul: Diego must have been pretty upset with him to side with Luther. 

“C’mon, Vanya’s freezing,” Alison said, and it was true, the rest of them were clad in numerous layers of Umbrella Academy uniform, Vanya left to shiver in her pyjamas. 

“That’s ok, you guys go on ahead, I’ll tie it up,” he smiled, waving his hands submissively. Ben’s eyes narrowed immediately. 

“I’ll wait,” he said instantly and Klaus squatted to the ground, gritting his teeth.  _ Not now, Benny, not this time, please _ .

“Do whatever, it’s just my shoe.” Play it cool. Blasé. 

“Don’t bother, Ben,” Diego said, catching hold of Ben’s arm and looking in disdain down at Klaus. “He’s not worth the time tonight.”

It was relief and heartbreak;  _ thank you, Diego _ , he thought, but the fact remained that he still had to mend that bridge.  _ God, why did you have to be such a dick to him, huh _ ? 

His fingers fiddled with his shoes as his siblings continued forward, Ben narrowing his eyes slightly before looking back ahead. 

“We’re taking Latrom Avenue!” Luther shouted to Klaus, who was still fiddling with his shoe. 

“Fine with me!” he called back flippantly, raising his eye to watch his siblings turn the next corner… and they were gone. Klaus stood quickly, his shoe tied tight. Sidestepping into the alleyway, his heart palpitations increased by the second. 

“Hey!” The low voice shocked him, but Klaus stood his ground. A broad-chested figure emerged from the darkness, approaching him with arms crossed and face obscured by shadows, a pitch-black hoodie cloaking him further. 

“Did you catch the game last night?” 

Klaus relaxed, this was what he’d hoped for. 

“Fifty-five to Seventy-Five. Absolute carnage,” he replied. The gruff man dropped his arms, but his suspicious demeanour didn’t lift. 

“Correct,” he said quietly, stepping forward and towering over Klaus’ scrawny physique. Finally making out his features from the streetlight, Klaus smiled and pulled out the jangling money sock. “Billy didn’t tell me it was a kid I was waiting on,” the man said, continuing to eye Klaus doubtfully. 

“I’m not a kid,” Klaus replied, feigning offence. “I’m a paying customer. Do you have it?” 

“Cash first,” he said, extending a hand expectantly. Klaus upturned the sock, dumping the entire contents into his pale hand, which was large enough to probably deliver a heart-stopping punch. 

“Happy?” Klaus said before he could bite his tongue.  _ Don’t provoke him,  _ he thought.  _ You’re all alone here.  _

“Mhmm,” the dealer murmured, and he pulled a small clear baggie of greeny-grey shredded plant from his pocket, discreetly slipping it into Klaus’ palm. “Next time, don’t bring the whole school with you,” he said, gesturing to where the rest of the Academy had turned the corner. 

“Trust me, I didn’t want to,” he replied coolly. Klaus opened his mouth to ask about where he could find him next time when-

“Klaus!” 

It was Ben’s voice, distant but drawing closer, and it rattled through Klaus’ ears like a headache. The man in the hoodie had vanished in an instant, and Klaus dove from the alley back out onto the street, stooping down in time to tuck the bag of weed into his sock (and feign the completion of his shoe tying) a millisecond before Ben came careening around the corner. Eyes flitting every direction in an attempt to assess the scene he had just stumbled upon, Ben strode up to Klaus as he stood, brushing himself off and rubbing his eyes. 

“What’s taking so long?”

“You’ll never believe,” Klaus gasped, pointing down Trenery Street. “A group of armed time-travelling assassins kidnapped me, holding me against my will for 3 days, before saying that if I didn’t wrestle Luther to the ground for being an enormous prick I would be doing the world a massive disservice,” 

Ben closed his eyes in silent frustration. 

“So, I guess I’ve gotta go back and give Number One a good old pummel, doncha think?”

Grasping Klaus’ arm and giving an almighty pull, Ben rolled his eyes as he led him around the corner, and back towards the Academy.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Ok... first chapter done. Obviously taking a little bit from the lines of backstory we get in the early episodes. Feedback is greatly appreciated, super stoked for season 2!!


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